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Auburn-Cal Post-Game Quotes

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Following Cal's 2-1 overtime win over Auburn in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the Bears' head coach Neil McGuire, junior forward Lisa Kevorkian and senior goalkeeper Gina Pellegrini chatted with the local media. Auburn head coach Karen Hoppa and Tigers' player Katy Frierson were also available for interviews.

Neil McGuireHead Coach, California'I feel really good for the players. I think over the course of the game, they deserved to get some success out of it. Auburn clearly played very, very well. We felt like, if you look at the shot count, we were deserving of a win.'

On winning in overtime in the NCAA Tournament:'Ultimately we felt like we didn't turn their back line enough. We felt like we played too much in front of their line and we said going into overtime that if we could get behind their line goals are coming. It's good for the team; I'm really happy for them. We have had a number of goals from a number of people all season long. Alex Morgan is our leading goal scorer and she got the assist for Lisa. Those guys have connected fairly regularly throughout the season so it was a great finish for both of them. She's had some other game-winning goal, but I would say this is the biggest goal of her career. She's had some other game-winning goals against some great teams but to do it in the NCAA Tournament, first round, in overtime and to put you into the next round against Florida State has to rank right up there.'

On playing Florida State:'It's exciting for the players. Ultimately when you go to a school like Cal or Florida State or any other major institution, you do it because you want to compete against the best. Florida State is clearly very, very talented and we are going to have to bring our `A' game but we are excited about the prospect.'

Lisa KevorkianSenior, Forward'It's my first one (NCAA Tournament goal) in four years. So, it's kind of a feeling of your heart swelling to the point of bursting. As a senior, (winning) means the world because every game can be your last in the tournament. My seniors and I were not ready for this to be our last game.'

On facing Florida State:'We are excited. It's like a repeat of freshman year.'

Gina PellegriniSenior, Goalkeeper'(Winning) means a lot. It's always best to be the underdog so we are ready for Sunday (against Florida State.)'

On winning in overtime:'We haven't had the best of luck in overtime so this is huge for us. It's a big confidence booster, and I think we needed something to recharge our battery and get a good win like this.'

On facing Florida State:'We are excited. We lost here our freshman year in the second round so all the seniors remember that. They are a good team, and it's always exciting to play a good team. Like I said, it's always fun to be the underdog. We are ready.'

Karen HoppaHead Coach, Auburn'We played great. I don't think the shots (22-12 in favor of Cal) are indicative of the match at all, nor is the score, unfortunately. I thought in the second half, we completely dominated. We had a goal called back, but I thought we really played well. They scored a good goal in overtime and unfortunately that's the way those things go sometimes.'

On the second-half adjustments:'We regrouped. We had a lot of jitters in the first half and didn't play our best soccer, and we were very one-dimensional in our attack. In the second half, we added a lot more creativity in our attack. We combined really well, and we were running great. We really stuck it to them in the second half, but unfortunately just couldn't get that second goal.'

On the season as a whole:'It was a season with a lot of adversity; starting the first game with a red card and we had all kinds of adversity with seniors getting hurt. Rebecca Howell got hurt early in the season, we had a week where the whole team was sick and we canceled practice, losing Steph Fransoso and Lizzie Hamersly, all that adversity created a lot of ups and downs. The thing I am most proud of is they way our team pulled together down the home stretch and played our best soccer. We played quality soccer and got a lot of quality wins, earning the right to get into the NCAA Tournament despite all that adversity. That shows a lot of character.'

On the prospects for next year:'We have quality young players that got a lot of experience this year. On a sad note we are really sorry to lose our six seniors. They have had great careers: four NCAA Tournaments, two SEC West Championships that is a great career for those six. We are sorry we have to end it on a loss but they have a lot to be proud of in their Auburn career.'

Katy FriersonSophomore Midfielder'It was a very even game. They won the first half and we won the second half. It came down to overtime. They made a great play and that's all it takes in overtime is making one great play. It is a tough loss.'

On goal by Heather Havron:'Heather's got a great corner. She is so consistent on them and she just did what she usually does and it went in for us. We had a lot of pressure in the box, a lot of numbers. It was a great goal.'

On the game as a whole:'It was a very even game. They won the first half and we won the second half. It came down to overtime. They made a great play and that's all it takes in overtime is making one great play. It is a tough loss.'

On Heather Havron's goal:'Heather's got a great corner. She is so consistent on them and she just did what she usually does and it went in for us. We had a lot of pressure in the box, a lot of numbers. It was a great goal.'

On the season as a whole:'It was an emotional season for us. Down the home stretch we showed that we had character and we played as a team and for one another and that's all you can do.'